Dynamitey Aphrodite
by Addicted to Antics
Summary: Written way back when for SMMFC, so I figured I'd upload it at last, simply because it's one of my most popular fics on there :D A trilogy surrounding Minako and her confusing feelings for a bartender named Hisoka.
1. ONE: Lose Control

_Dynamite-y Aphrodite_

* * *

ONE

In one quick glimpse she takes a good look at her next victim-_broad, strong shoulders; willowy but sturdy torso; tanned and toned arms beneath rolled sleeves_-before tilting the edges of her crimson lips and leaning forward in her stool to reach across the granite counter. "I've decided something," she begins loudly to the tall man tending the bar. Intelligent gray-blue eyes return her flirtatious leer as he turns around.

"What's that?" he asks over the intrusive buzz of the bass from the speakers behind him while fixing a drink for the man beside her. She takes a drag on her cigarette as she finds that she is rather pleased to see that he is not quite surprised by her sudden interest in him, but something in the back of her mind tells her that she'll have to work harder than usual. He's a bartender; he's no doubt seen _everything_ the book. Her smile broadens. She's a goddess of love and beauty; she'll have nothing to worry about.

She exhales after a moment, fixating on his eyes with her own very clear ones. "I think I'll try something new tonight."

"What do you have in mind?" He slides the shot down its recipient, all the while maintaining that precious eye contact. Minako runs a hand across her shoulder and rubs it, relieving some of the tension building in her body. It doesn't hurt that her orange dress's thin strap slides down her upper arm a bit at the touch, but she smoothly returns the troublesome thing to its place.

"I want something... _explosive_."

"I've got this really great new drink," he offers, breaking their gaze as he points to the fifth item on the bar menu. She grins at the title.

"The Neopolitan Dynamite."

"It provides quite a bang."

She nods. "With a name like that, it'd be a crime not to. I'll take one."

Her bartender pulls the top off of a blender and pours the contents of a few bottles into it before dropping several cubes of ice into the mix. He shuts the lid and in a moment the blender vibrates and booms in a tumultuous and turbulent storm of white, tan and pink.

"It looks like that boxed ice cream they sell at the grocery store," she shouts over the noise.

"It'll taste like that boxed ice cream they sell at the grocery store, too. Hence the name."

"Ah," she breathes in understanding. She raises a manicured brow and brings the cigarette to her mouth before pressing it into the ash tray in front of her. This one was a little more difficult than most, just as she suspected. But, of course, she liked a challenge.

After several seconds, he pours a bit of the drink out of the blender and strains it into a shot glass. She watches the milky mixture swirl as it fills the clear glass, it's creamy composition seeming... almost tame, quiet. Reserved. Not something she'd ever associate with dynamite.

"This looks like something my friend Rei-chan would drink."

"Don't judge it until you've tried it. You'll find that first impressions, in this case and many others, aren't everything," he replies, his eyes boring into her own. It is almost staggering to her, how deep those eyes are. She shakes her head and attempts to gain control of the situation as he passes her the drink, never once breaking their trance.

She is in a trance. That is the once word for it. The smooth drink slides down her throat as she knocks her head back, the long blond locks reaching for the floor.

And then she returns, her eyes widening as she feels the intensity of that little creamy drink kick in. She sees shining, luxuriant stars and her eyes roll back into her head, reeling from the pleasure... she wants to jump, to dance, to strip, to fuck...

If Ami knew, she'd probably say it was...

She gasps and leaps on to the counter, knocking over the rum and coke her fellow barhopper beside her had been stewing over. Her bartender simply stares at her as she grips his shirt collar, pulling him closer to her slender frame.

"What... on earth was... _in that_?"

Startled, he attempts to loosen the clench around his neck with his large hands. "Just some Bailey's irish cream, strawberry creme liqueur and a hint of creme de cacao."

"You didn't drug it?"

"Of course not!" He appears almost affronted at the accusation. She releases her death grip on him and smiles sweetly, falling back into her stool. "What makes you think I'd do that?"

She shakes the blond hair out of her face. "I saw stars. I don't ever see stars when I drink." _Gotta put that final bit in there, of course_, she thinks with a secret grin.

He breaks out into a hearty chuckle and shakes his head, his bountiful blond hair waving with the movement. "You know, you never fail to amuse me." She bites her lip-_anything to keep you entertained-_and blushes. She still watches him through her long lashes as he takes an order from another customer.

The heat in her face signals a shrill alarm, and as it blares in her mind, she almost swoons. Almost. She's still in control of their little game, after all.

"Well then, Naka-san, I'll take another," she orders after a while, sitting almost completely straight up as he returns his attention to her.

"Coming right up, Aino-san."

He turns to the blender, and she stares at him, unable to discern the meaning of a sudden pang in her chest--_I want to lose control with only you_-as she rests her chin in her palms, her fingers curling around the fair skin. Blond hair pools on the bar counter.

* * *

A/N: Naka Hisoka = Kunzite's current incarnation, fyi.


	2. TWO: Little Black Dress

_Dynamite-y Aphrodite_

* * *

TWO

The first thing I think is _Holy fuck, my head hurts._

My blue eyes struggle to open and without any real awareness on my part, two slim hands reach for them aimlessly, rubbing any skin that isn't coated in drool. Sitting up requires energy I really haven't yet acquired, so I discontentedly rest in the bed, staring through the blur with bloodshot eyes at the ceiling fan.

A ceiling fan which, might I add, was not mine. In fact, I've never seen it before.

I'd be a liar if I said that this is a new experience for me. I've had to take many "walks of shame" before, cursing out my beer goggles and lack of vaginal shield or whatever. I mean, if someone would just invent a vaginal shield, I'd buy it. I'd buy ten. Just in case.

So I'll just leave. Right? Minako, don't look to the left. Don't do it. _Don't_. You're better off not knowing who-

Shit. I look. And I see a great mess of dirty blond curls covering the face of Naka Hisoka.

_No_. No, no, no, no, no! I want to scream. And my whole head is already doing that, so forget that I'm miserably hungover... but my entire body is bitching at me for yet another fuck up. And just in time, the images of last night start to flood my head.

_Rough, experienced hands search her, exploring her entire body... they wander with a purpose, just like him. She smiles as he buries kisses in her neck, and she can't help but pulling him closer to her into the shadows in the corner of the room that they're occupying, dropping the glass she'd been working on in favor of his hair... oh, how she's wanted to run her fingers through the curls..._

I shake my head, as if it's one of those Etch-a-sketch things, and attempt to sit up. Resisting the urge to cheer in success, I pull myself out of the covers, cursing a bit at my naked body and where the hell is my dress?

Of course, it's draped over the dog's kennel. Which is wire, so I'll almost certainly wake up the dog. Which, if I recall correctly... well, I'll have to work quickly if I don't want to alert both Sparky and Naka to my presence. Which I don't. Definitely not.

I walk over to the door to the bedroom and quickly twist the doorknob open, cracking it just enough to make for a stealthy getaway. I find my shoes, my bra and my panties before stepping over to the dog's kennel and-

"Minako-san?"

Well, I guess we're on a first name basis, now. And I figure that there's little use in me worrying about waking him, so I unceremoniously pull the dress off of the crate and immediate, little Sparky lifts his head in annoyance. I can tell he's annoyed just from the way his eyes seem to say, "You, Aino MInako, are a douchebag." Artemis has the same eye-twinkle thing perfected.

Usually, the twinkling of eyes would signify some kind of pleasant feeling. But in animals, the twinkle seems to be wholly less of a good thing.

"Minako-san."

I'd been hoping that maybe, if I pretended I didn't hear him that he wouldn't think I am currently standing half naked in his bedroom, my little black dress in hand. You know, like that theory... if a tree falls in a forest and you don't hear it, did it exist? Or something like that, anyway.

But Hisoka's smarter than that. I turn, and yes, I realize that the shit will soon hit the fan, as is the way of these things.

What can I say? _Oh yes, we did sleep together, and did you know that the Americans got a new president?  
_  
But eloquence doesn't really suit me at this time of the morning when I'm not hungover. So yes, the gods are really working in my favor today. "Hi." I even wave, like a good little piece of shit.

_Well that's good, Mina-chan._ I'm sure a little liar.

He stares at me from the bed with those startling blue-gray eyes, sitting up just enough so I can see his well-defined body. Of course, I doubt he's really trying to re-seduce me (he's not the type) but still, the fact of the matter is that here lies a very attractive and naked man. Just feet away from me.

And I've already had him, which is why I can't understand why I am still so drawn to him. I'm Minako, incarnation of Aphrodite. I don't do second dates. Or second lays. But there's some electricity and some pull... hell, there's a lot of those.

"We should talk about this," he says simply. And I can't believe it. Even when I'm standing here half naked, he wants to talk. He wants to be rational. If only he'd been this rational the night before.

"Yeah, I guess." _No, I really don't want to_.

"You were drunk." He's not accusing me, he's just stating the obvious, just building a case to explain how the hell we had crossed the line last night. "I wasn't."

Of course; the bartender has to stay sober. Isn't that a rule of thumb or something?

"Yeah," I agree, sitting a safe distance away from him on the bed. I honestly don't trust my body, my cells, not to jump his bones right here and now. Again. Maybe two times is a charm.

"And it was good."

If by good, he means 'mind-numbing' then yes, it was good. But I can't say that, so I just nod... kind of. Actually, because of my pride, I just do this weird bob-noncommital thing.

"So... we agree that you didn't want this," he murmured with a strange twinkle in his eyes. And unlike with animals, I've found that eye twinkles in humans are wholly wonderful things. Or at least they foreshadow them.

Um...

No. I mean, I have to say yes, because I don't want... well, I'm not really sure what it is I don't want, but whatever it is, I want nothing to do with it. Nothing.

Oh hell. I've wanted this for two years. Ever since I met him, I've wanted him. But he can't know that, and I can't really go around saying that, can I? Especially not with all of the Shitennou stuff going on right now. Usagi and Mamoru have enough to deal with... I don't want to add my own mess to theirs.

"I'm sorry," I say before turning to leave. I slip on my black dress and even though everything in me is telling me to go back, to turn around and tell him that I'm in deep, that I want him to know that I lo-

I leave the room before I can even think about verbalizing _that_. And then I cry. I cry because I do love him, and even though he's not the loving kind, I know that he loves me, too. And maybe it is in the stars. Maybe we are meant to be. But that idea, just the thought that I could actually prove Adonis wrong, that I could love and be loved and be happy...

It's too much to think about before a cup of coffee and a dose or two of Tylenol.

* * *

A/N: Naka Hisoka = Kunzite's current incarnation, fyi.


	3. THREE: Rules of Attraction

_Dynamite-y Aphrodite_

* * *

THREE

The music blared. Lights flared in spiraling, twisting spindles around the small club.

She reapplied her Rogue Dior and pressed her lips together, reveling in the feel of the fresh coat of red. He had told her she looked best in red, after all. And while she wasn't going to let him win their little game completely, she figured that the concession of her lips would prove effective in the long run (rule 1: a man prefers a woman who is practiced in the art of compromise.)

Of course, she thought with a half smile, she was wearing her favorite bright red lingerie underneath the short silver-sequined shift and leather jacket.

As she sunk into her favorite chair at the bar, she pulled out her cell phone and started texting (rule 2: a woman should never appear too interested in her target) Usagi about how chilly it was that night. The content really didn't matter; only the temporary reflection of the screen's light on her features.

"Hello Aino-san." She pushed aside the urge to smile broadly at him before jumping over the bar and fucking him right there (rule 3: a woman should exert some self control or run the risk of appearing too needy or slutty.)

"I'll have the usual, love."

He nodded and reached for the already-prepared icy concoction behind him. She raised a blond eyebrow. "How many rufees did you stuff into the blender?"

He chuckled. "Four. You're pretty stubborn," he replied, sliding the chilled shot over to her. "You always come in at 6 after 9. I figured I'd save you the trouble of waiting to get drunk."

"How gentlemanly of you. _L'chaim_," she saluted before pressing her Rouge Dior lips to the cold glass and tossing the contents back. Her eyes rolled back in pleasure as the creamy liquor mixture slid down her throat. "Gets me everytime." An understatement, of course, but she wasn't about to give him the satisfaction of knowing that he alone had these powers over her.

He stared at her with unreadable gray eyes as she wiped off some of the remnants from the corner of her mouth. "Aino-san, can I talk to you outside for a moment?"

She furrowed her brow (rule 4: a woman should never let frivolous banter lead to serious discourse early in the game) and shrugged. "Shouldn't you be manning your territory?"

Something flashed in his eyes for a moment before he grinned. "Morimoto-san can take care of things for a couple of minutes."

"Alright, I guess. But only a few minutes. It's ungodly out there."

She watched him walk around the bar with wary eyes and felt a quiver of desire flutter in her abdomen as she followed him out into the elements. The rain had turned to sleet, and she had to tuck her arms under each other to keep warm. Of course, he appeared completely unfazed by the chill and simply leaned against the wall near the door.

"Minako-san... I think we need to talk about last night..."

"What's there to talk about?" she asked quickly. He frowned. "We had sex. It didn't mean anything. Can we go back inside?"

She turned around but his strong, large hand clasped her wrist gently. Her eyes ventured a glance at his and found the most conflicted, aching yearning reflected in the gray and green. She only hoped she was doing a better job masking the thrill she felt at his touch than he was. Her hair was starting to stick to her face and lips, but all she could really think was _let go let go let go_ as he pulled her back to him. "Minako, for once, stop playing your little game and just listen to me!"

Unfortunately, all she knew how to do was play games. "Hisoka-san, I'm not playi-"

He leaned closer to her. "Don't lie to me," he whispered, and she felt her body shudder in longing.

And she fixed her blue eyes on him, realizing that games and lies and silly red lingerie were so... superficial. This need she felt was almost cellular. Ensconced in her DNA. So tiny, so microscopic, that she was amazed at how overwhelming it was. It was galactic, universal... stellar...  
"Never," she gasped before snaking her arms around neck and pulling him into her, immersing herself in this timeless throbbing. Before she pressed her lips against his, however, the rules flooded back to her (rule 5: a woman should never give up without a fight) and Minako bit her lip. "I... I think I need a drink."

Hisoka caressed her cheek with his callused hands and shook his head. Her wet hair tangled beneath his fingers and as she sensed that miserable, dull stinging in her eyes that always preceded tears, she watched him lean away from her. "This isn't you. You aren't some stupid whore who gets hammered because she has nothing better to do."

She scoffed. "How do you know? _You don't even know me_!"

The green in his eyes flared, as if to say, "I know you better than you know yourself." She felt her abdomen clench. "I know that you aren't like the girls who come here. You have a career, you're going to be somebody... I don't understand why you see the need to throw it all away in some dark club night after night!"

The sleet came down in sheets above them. For a great many moments, only the sound of icy rain slamming against the pavement accompanied their silent duet. And then, Minako remembered the final rule. Rule 6: don't follow the fucking rules.

"Who... are you?" she breathed as the first tear slipped down her rosy cheek. It moistened the drying Rogue Dior, but the salty taste triggered a wave of nausea.

"I'm a very, very terrible person, Minako," he warned, a hint of world weariness coloring his voice.

She inched closer to him, blue eyes desperately searching his cold gray-green ones for... anything. "I don't believe you," she murmured through a tight throat. "You're so full of goodness, it hurts me to touch you..." Her fingers trailed down his face to his cracked lips. "But I can't stop. Everything in me, every cell in my body, screams at me when you're near, telling me that I know you."

"We are both bound by our duties." Her brow furrowed... how did he know? "Perhaps the bond you feel is simply empathy?"

A second tear tumbled from her eye. "That's not true."

"Listen to me: _you do not know me_. This is for the best." His eyes, however, said otherwise, as he bent down to kiss her. At the moment their lips touched, she lost control. All she needed was this and the rain and and her fingers journeying through his curls and their dancing tongues and his roaming hands and her body flush against his and the moaning and their stumbling as they bumped against the bar wall behind them and the searing agony inside of her body as she begged for more and more and more.

And as suddenly as it had started, it ended. He shook his head, wiped the lipstick off of his mouth and walked back through the door.

And in her finest silver-sequins and red lingerie, she left the wall to gossip behind her back, sobbing.

* * *

A/N: Naka Hisoka = Kunzite's current incarnation, fyi.


End file.
